CIF Events | Climate Investment Funds

October 27, 2021, Wednesday, 9:00-10:30am ET

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Reeling from Covid-19, emerging markets are struggling to attract the funds needed to decarbonize their strained economies. Global investment into technologies to decarbonize the world’s energy systems hit a record high of $510 billion in 2020, but also became more concentrated among wealthier countries as the pandemic slowed flows to emerging markets. Many nations today lack the conditions to attract the volumes required, particularly as they grapple with finances strained by the health crisis.

Meanwhile, in the world’s financial capitals, investor demand for socially minded assets has been growing swiftly, particularly for clean power assets. This raises the alluring prospect of private capital meeting emerging markets’ capital needs through billions, or even trillions of dollars in new deployment.

The power sector remains the top source of emissions in the world and, within it, coal remains the single largest source. So, mobilizing clean power investment can create immediate and meaningful cuts to emissions. Renewable energy technologies today are available, scalable and can serve as the foundation for comprehensive decarbonization, particularly if coupled with expanded electrification of other sectors of the economy.

Financial intermediaries act as a bridge between capital providers and borrowers through fund-raising and deployment activities. This joint report between the Climate Investment Funds (CIF) and BloombergNEF identifies the role that financial intermediaries can play to mobilize clean energy investment in emerging market, focusing on clean power transport.

Join us to discuss how financial intermediaries (banks, institutional funds, etc) can deploy capital that cleans up power and electrifies transport where it counts. The CIF and BNEF will break down how development finance, sustainable debt and institutional investors can enable emerging markets to tap into global capital markets and reap the rewards.

Learn more:

AGENDA

9:00am Introductions
Round of introductions and scene-setting

9:10 am Context and report launch
Context, description and key findings

9:30 am Round table discussion
Moderated panel discussion and insights from key stakeholders

10:10 am Conclusion
Closing words

Speakers

Tomas Anker Christensen

Climate Ambassador

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark

Tomas Anker Christensen has long experience in the field of climate and sustainability. He was previously the Danish ambassador to Cairo. Tomas has been Head of Department for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Center for Global Challenges, where he was at the head of the establishment of the 3GF – an international partnership for green transition.

Tomas Anker Christensen has long experience in the field of climate and sustainability. He was previously the Danish ambassador to Cairo. Tomas has been Head of Department for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Center for Global Challenges, where he was at the head of the establishment of the 3GF – an international partnership for green transition.

Subsequently, he was employed by the UN Secretary-General’s Cabinet, where he was head of the climate team with responsibility for preparing and conducting the 2014 UN Climate Summit. In the period 2015-2017, he was head of cabinet for the president of the General Assembly, with particular focus on implementation of the Paris Agreement and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Thereafter, Tomas Anker Christensen was appointed special advisor to the UN’s special envoy on climate, Michael Bloomberg.

Ethan Zindler

Head of Americas

BloombergNEF

Mr. Zindler manages the company's analyst and commercial teams in New York, Washington, San Francisco, and Sao Paulo. Mr. Zindler also oversees a team devoted to tracking lower-carbon policy developments around the globe impacting renewables, biofuels, and energy efficiency.

Mr. Zindler manages the company's analyst and commercial teams in New York, Washington, San Francisco, and Sao Paulo. Mr. Zindler also oversees a team devoted to tracking lower-carbon policy developments around the globe impacting renewables, biofuels, and energy efficiency. He manages the production of Climatescope, a project to profile clean energy investment conditions in emerging markets previously underwritten by the Inter-American Development Bank, the UK Department for International Development, and USAID.

Based in Washington, Mr. Zindler is a Senior Associate (Non-Resident) at the Center for Strategic & International Studies Energy Security and Climate Change Program. Mr. Zindler holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BA from Georgetown University.

Mafalda Duarte

Chief Executive Officer

Climate Investment Funds

Mafalda has led the Climate Investment Funds since 2014. During her tenure, she has overseen hundreds of clean energy and climate resilience investments in 72 countries worldwide. The largest solar park in the world and South America’s first geothermal power plant are among the numerous projects realized under her leadership.

Mafalda has led the Climate Investment Funds since 2014. During her tenure, she has overseen hundreds of clean energy and climate resilience investments in 72 countries worldwide. The largest solar park in the world and South America’s first geothermal power plant are among the numerous projects realized under her leadership. Mafalda is now expanding the remit of the organization into new areas, which includes accelerating out of the coal and industry decarbonization phase. Committed to putting fairness and equality at the heart of climate finance, she has launched the Climate Investment Funds’ Just Transition Initiative to help achieve that aim. Mafalda previously held senior roles at the African Development Bank and the World Bank. A much sought-after speaker on climate finance, she has been quoted in Reuters, BBC World Service, The Economist, and the Financial Times, among many others.

Dr.Amal -Lee Amin

Climate Change Director

CDC

Amal-Lee is a passionate advocate for sustainable development. In 2019 she was recognized by Apolitico as one of the top 100 influencers on climate policy. Her professional experience includes shaping and leading policy on climate change and development, sustainable energy and green finance within the UK Government Chief of Climate Change at the Inter-American Development Bank and developing a new international climate finance program at the think-tank E3G.

Amal-Lee is a passionate advocate for sustainable development. In 2019 she was recognized by Apolitico as one of the top 100 influencers on climate policy. Her professional experience includes shaping and leading policy on climate change and development, sustainable energy and green finance within the UK Government Chief of Climate Change at the Inter-American Development Bank and developing a new international climate finance program at the think-tank E3G.

In 2020 Amal-Lee joined CDC Group as Director of Climate Change leading a team on development and implementation of a new strategy for aligning financial flows to the Paris Agreement. In this role she is developing partnerships for increasing climate financed investments, including a Just Transition Finance Roadmaps for India and South Africa, and a new DFI collaborative for accelerating investment in climate adaptation. Amal-Lee is also a senior advisor to the UK Government COP26 Presidency. Amal-Lee’s professional career is underpinned by her Doctorate research on drivers for change within the power sector of developing countries, with case studies on the potential for commercialization of renewable electricity in India and South Africa.

Curtis Ravenel

Senior Advisor to former Bank of England Governor Mark Carney, COP26 Finance Advisor and UN Special Envoy for Climate Finance

Curtis Ravenel is a Senior Advisor to former Bank of England Governor Mark Carney, COP26 Finance Advisor and UN Special Envoy for Climate Finance and a founding member of the Secretariat for the Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). He also serves as a Distinguished Fellow in Sustainable Finance at ClimateWorks Foundation and as a Strategic Advisor to Context Labs BV and Persefoni Ai.

Curtis Ravenel is a Senior Advisor to former Bank of England Governor Mark Carney, COP26 Finance Advisor and UN Special Envoy for Climate Finance and a founding member of the Secretariat for the Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). He also serves as a Distinguished Fellow in Sustainable Finance at ClimateWorks Foundation and as a Strategic Advisor to Context Labs BV and Persefoni Ai.

Curtis founded the Sustainable Business & Finance Group at Bloomberg LP and served as its Global Head from 2007-2019. Under his leadership, Bloomberg integrated sustainability considerations into the firm’s operations globally and developed strategies to leverage Bloomberg’s Enterprise Products to evaluate sustainability-related risks and opportunities for finance professionals. Curtis holds an MBA from Columbia Business School and a BA in History from Davidson College.

James Seward

Senior Financial Officer and Regional Coordinator for Africa

Capital Markets and Investment Department, World Bank Treasury

James Seward is a Senior Financial Officer in the Capital Markets and Investments team of the World Bank Treasury. He leads the Treasury's work in Africa to design and implement financial solutions to help emerging market governments access development financing, manage financial risks, and utilize innovative financial structures for sustainable investments.

James Seward is a Senior Financial Officer in the Capital Markets and Investments team of the World Bank Treasury. He leads the Treasury's work in Africa to design and implement financial solutions to help emerging market governments access development financing, manage financial risks, and utilize innovative financial structures for sustainable investments.

James has over 18 years of experience at the World Bank, focused on financial sector development and policy issues. His prior positions included Practice Manager for the Finance and Markets team in Africa, overseeing a team of 26, a lending portfolio of $1.4 billion, and 40 grants of $32.4 million in 20 countries. He was also the Practice Manager of the Finance team in East Asia and Pacific Region, managing 42 staff in 10 offices and a lending portfolio of $700 million. James has worked on a range of policy issues, including financial stability, banking reform, regulation, and supervision, building financial markets, and expanding access to finance. His professional experience before joining the World Bank was with the U.S. Departments of Treasury and State. He has a master's degree from Harvard University and an undergraduate degree from James Madison University

Heike Reichelt

Head of Investor Relations and New Products

World Bank Treasury

Heike Reichelt is Head of Investor Relations and New Products at the World Bank Treasury. The World Bank Treasury manages the funding programs for the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and for the International Development association (IDA).

Heike Reichelt is Head of Investor Relations and New Products at the World Bank Treasury. The World Bank Treasury manages the funding programs for the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and for the International Development association (IDA).

Her team’s responsibilities include managing relationships with bond investors and rating agencies, and developing new products for investors. These include products that raise awareness for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and products for climate change mitigation and adaptation - like World Bank Green Bonds. Her team also performs similar functions for the International Finance Facility for Immunisation (IFFIm), for which the World Bank acts as treasury manager. Heike manages outreach to the sustainable and impact investing community and works with other issuers and market participants to encourage the growth of sustainable capital markets focused on making a long-term positive social and environmental impact. She has 20+ years of experience in finance – including as an engagement manager for the World Bank Treasury's Reserves Advisory Management Program for central banks and in the areas of export finance and capital markets. Heike was recognized for her role in building sustainable capital markets as the 2017 recipient of the prestigious Joan Bavaria Award.